Does the Role a Pet Played before Disposition, and How the Pet is Lost Influence Pet Owner’s Future Pet Adoption Decision?

Goitom Tesfom, Nancy J. Birch

Abstract

The purpose of the paper is to explore how the role a pet played before disposition and how the owner lost his/herpet affect the pet owner’s next pet adoption decision. Results from Pearson chi-square tests of independence showno significant relationship between how the respondent viewed his/her pet before relationship ended and the lengthof time he/she waited before adopting another pet. However, a significant relationship was found between how thepet owner lost his/her pet and the length of time he/she waited before adopting another pet. Respondents who saidthey lost their pet voluntarily were more likely to wait longer before adopting another pet than those who said theylost their pet involuntarily. Moreover, the results confirm that respondents who viewed their pet as a child, beforeend of relationship, were more likely to hold funeral rituals than those who viewed their pet as a friend, a family orhousehold member. Finally, those pet owners who lost their pets and decided to adopt another pet are likely tochoose a pet of the same species but different breed. Implications to theory and practice are discussed.

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